With those words, RKO Pictures introduced one of the most well-known and enduring movie monsters of all time. "Kong" is a giant gorilla living on a hidden island in the South Pacific. When a charter ship travels to this island, the oversized primate becomes enraptured by the crew's sole blonde woman, whom the island natives offer up to it in sacrifice. The crew rescue the girl and even manage to capture Kong, bringing the creature back to Manhattan for a spectacle. However, Kong escapes and causes mayhem in the streets of New York before being shot off the top of a skyscraper.

The original 1933 film has had two official remakes, along with numerous spin-offs, sequels, crossovers, and spoofs. Retellings in other media range from a Direct-to-Video animated feature in The '90s (The Mighty Kong for those curious) to an Australian stage musical in 2013 (a Broadway production of this version has been announced, though the opening date is currently in limbo). The three major films (and their sequels) are:

King Kong has been the basis for two attractions at Universal Orlando Resort. The first attraction, known as Kongfrontation, was among the opening day rides at Universal Studios Florida in 1990. Based off the 1976 remake, the ride had guests board the Roosevelt Island trams and come face-to-face with the giant ape during his rampage in New York. The ride was suddenly closed in 2002, a decision that lead to much backlash from both fans and the general public. In response, a new King Kong attraction would eventually be built at the neighboring park, Universal's Islands of Adventure, in 2016. This new ride, titled, Skull Island: Reign of Kong, is loosely based off of the 2005 remake and follows an expedition to Skull Island that quickly goes awry as guests get several close encounters with the island's inhabitants before coming across Kong himself in a battle between him and a Vastatosaurus Rex trio.

General tropes for all films:

Adaptational Heroism: Jack's misogyny, arrogance and butchness in the original are parodied in a secondary character in the 2005 version while he is reinvented as a bookish, gentlemanly romantic. Ann, meanwhile, in the remakes, is no longer entirely terrified of the monster but sympathizes with him and is even able to calm him at times.

Anti-Villain: Even though Kong is a destructive force and responsible for killing extras in every film, he doesn't really comprehend the damage he's causing: he just wants Ann/Dwan. As such, King remains sympathetic in all film versions, and in some interpretations is the hero compared to the more greedy humans (Denham, Wilson the oil exec).

Attack of the 50-Foot Whatever: In the original film, the stop-motion Kong models used on Skull Island were scaled to look 18 feet tall, but the one used in New York was made to appear 24 feet tall. The life-size hand, foot, and head props were built with a 40-foot Kong in mind, and RKO's marketing said Kong was 50 feet high. In the first remake, he's ranges from 42 to 55 feet, in King Kong Lives, he's 60 feet, in King Kong vs. Godzilla he's 148 feet, in King Kong Escapes he's 66 feet, and in Peter Jackson's remake, he's 25 feet tall, but would probably be closer to 35 if he stood upright like the others instead of walking on his knuckles.

Jackson's Kong is closest to what the Square/Cube Law allows: a bit larger than a large African Elephant◊, walks on all fours most of the time, to distribute weight evenly, proportionately short hind legs with huge feet, like largest modern bears have to support them when walking upright. A 50ft Kong would be unrealistic, an 148ft Kong downright impossible.

1933: King Kong (giant ape) fighting a Tyrannosaurus Rex. This might be the Trope Codifier for modern giant monster fights in movies.

1976: King Kong fights giant snake.

2005: King Kong fights no less than three Vastatosaurus rex, a fictive descendant of the Tyrannosaurus Rex.

Black Dude Dies First: Averted in the '76 film, wherein black crew member Boan is the only member of the search party besides Prescott to survive. The first man to die in the 2005 film was a man who got a native spear through the chest. Ben Hayes died a bit later.

Cataclysm Climax: Notably, the destruction of Skull Island in both the 1933 and 2005 versions does not happen in the main films themselves (in 1933, it happened in the sequel; in 2005, it is described only on the website and the special features on the DVD.

Chained to a Rock: the natives tie a young maiden to stakes outside the village and leave her as an offering for Kong. Ann Darrow becomes the last 'bride of Kong' to be offered.

Climbing Climax: Each film's climax takes place on top of the currently highest building in New York (the Empire State Building in the 1933 and 2005 movies, the World Trade Center in the 1976 one).

Clothing Damage: Sustained by Ann/Dwan, particularly in the '33 version when Kong tries to "peel" her like a banana.

This is taken to insane extremes in the little-known Don Simpson "Monster Comics" adaptation. She's stripped completely down to her bra and panties. Likewise, Jack consistently loses bits and pieces of his clothing throughout his travails. By the time he and Ann get back to the wall, he's shirtless and his pants have been shredded to the point where it looks like he's wearing daisy dukes.

Creator Cameo: In the original, the aircrew that downs Kong was played by the director and producer, Merian C. Cooper and Ernest Shoedsack. In the 2005 remake, Jackson puts himself in the fatal plane in a deliberate homage. Also with him in that plane is Rick Baker, who played Kong in the suit in the '76 version.

Damsel in Distress: Played straight in the original; subverted/deconstructed in the later films with the girl's Stockholm-esque/Koko-and-Kitten bonding with Kong.

Darker and Edgier: The original was pretty dark as it was, but the '76 version is a bit darker, with much more blood and gore (unsurprising, considering the difference in decades and moviemaking standards). And the '05 version is the darkest yet, with its savage natives, tons of violence, and nightmarish creatures.

Downer Ending / Bittersweet Ending: Both the '76 and '05 versions, as a result of making Kong even more sympathetic and having Ann/Dwan form a bond with him. The 2005 version in particular gets bleaker and bleaker the more you think about it: Kong's dead, and since he's the Last of His Kind, his whole species is now extinct. Several civilians and many of the soldiers who tried to bring him down and protect the city were killed. Carl Denham's career is ruined for sure, and he'll never be able to donate the proceeds of his film to the families of the Venture's deceased crew members. And of the Venture's crew that survived, most of their friends (and in Jimmy's case, his father figure) are dead. One of the only really bright spots to come out of the whole deal is Ann and Jack's relationship, and there's a feeling that it won't last. Granted, a lot of the same points could also apply to the original, but the fact that the story of the '05 version is more "developed" just makes it even sadder. The bittersweet part to this is that at least New York is saved from destruction.

Even worse, A Natural History Of Skull Island tells us Denham led several more expeditions to the island that got even more people killed, after which the whole place sank into the sea in an earthquake. So every exotic species on the island wound up extinct, and the natives too.

Escaped Animal Rampage: After Kong arrives in New York City he is exhibited in a theater. When he escapes he terrorizes the city and... well, you know the rest.

Everybody's Dead, Dave: ...particularly during the "shaken log" sequence, which both the 1933 and 1976 versions have. Subverted at first in the 2005 remake, where Denham and most of his crew survive the fall, but then double-subverted when the insects attack and consume his entire crew.

Originally, this was supposed to happen in the 1933 version as well. The scene, now known as "Spider Pit Sequence", was actually shot, but removed because according to Cooper "it stopped the story".

Monster-Shaped Mountain: Several fictional homages to the original film have taken Skull Island's name literally, depicting either its central mountain peak or the actual shoreline as skull-shaped.

Monumental Battle: Always the tallest skyscraper in New York (Empire State Building, World Trade Center)

Non-Malicious Monster: Kong, who rampages in New York and kills numerous citizens only because he is taken into an alien and hostile environment. Especially notable in the 2005 version, but present in all incarnations.

Not Evil, Just Misunderstood: If you think about it, Kong is not the real monster here. Kidnapped, dragged away from home, put on display and gawked at...he's more a victim than Fay Wray was.

Out of Focus: Englehorn in the '33 and '05 films, and Ross in the '76 one.

Pretty in Mink: In the original film, Ann wears a chinchilla cape. In the 1976 film, Dwan wears a chinchilla jacket.

Primal Chest-Pound: Kong often does it; most iconically after defeating the giant reptile (Tyrannosaurus rex / giant snake / V-rex), and when fighting the planes on top of the building.

The Remake: Most people agree the '76 film was a Remake Decay; the '05 version has been mostly favorably received.

Explained in the 2005 A Natural History of Skull Island. Kong is the Last of His Kind. Further, in the 2005 film, we see the bones of others of his kind, further cementing the idea that he is all alone.

Starring Special Effects: While all movies feature human actors, the real star is Kong, created with the most modern visual effects of the age (stop motion in 1933, animatronic suit in 1976, CGI / motion capture in 2005).

Stock Dinosaurs: Used in the 1933 (as well as averted) and averted in the remake (we get modern equivalents that have the stock dinosaurs as ancestors). Tyrannosaurus, Stegosaurus, Brontosaurus, Plesiosaur and Pteranodon all show up in the 1933 film (with the sequel having Styracosaurus, A Cave Bear, a different Plesiosaur and a dragon-like monster). The 2005 remake has descendants of Tyrannosaurs, Sauropods, Horned Dinosaurs, Duck Billed Dinosaurs and Raptors in it. It also has Giant centipedes, land-crocodiles and other weird thing.

The 2005 version further subverts this by replacing the Pteranodon (which is not a dinosaur, but its "stock" anyway) with flying rodents, which look like a cross between a bat and a naked mole rat with large eyes and hindlimbs like those of a hawk.

Title Drop: For most of the movie everyone just calls the ape "Kong," and it's not until near the end that we see "KING Kong" written on a huge sign in New York. After that they still don't say the whole thing in dialogue.

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